Velveeta is different-- 60% moisture and 20% milkfat -- it can contain dry milk, whey -- which reduces the amount of cheese in the product.

American cheese--the flavor is mild, the texture is uniform, but I think it would be hard to find an American who hasn't really enjoyed many a cheeseburger or grilled cheese sandwich made with American cheese.

The French cheese that comes in the little triangles, The Laughing Cow brand, is also a processed cheese. I'm curious to know what the French think of this cheese.

I might have been misinformed as to the precise ingredients (although I wonder what those emulsifiers are; normally they are eggs, oils, or random chemicals most of us wouldn't recognize as food). But the point is that it is legally classed as a processed cheese product by the Feds, which is different than being actual cheese.

In that regard, it is more akin to Cheese Whiz than it is to Cheddar. And, as I mentioned, Cheeze Whiz is an ingredient in one of the great, iconic American dishes.

FWIW, I never said I didn't eat American cheese. I have, as you note, enjoyed many a burger topped with it. And it's great melted into an omelet as well. And in a grilled-cheese sandwich. And.......

I have a recipe that should've gone in the vile thread--my grandmother made a salad called coins of gold. It had carrots sliced into coins, and a dressing of canned tomato soup and Wesson vegetable oil.

I think the PTSD from Grandma, an otherwise outstanding cook, making something like that blocked out the other ingredients._________________"Food is an important part of a balanced diet..." Fran Leibowitz

dory, I remember those Chun King sauces and the briny sprouts! Back in 1960 I thought it was quite exotic and adventurous. Mind you in 1960, if you ask me, they hadn't even invented broccolli yet! I swear I didn't see those little tree like vegies until I was about 15, mid 60s!_________________Vivant Linguae Mortuae!!

Mmel'ours, I wonder if something wasn't lost in translation somewhere.

There is an old dish, with numerous variations, called Copper Pennies, that has those ingredients as a base. But there are other ingredients as well. The end result is actually a nice cold dish---great for picnics, family gatherings, and the like.

Joined: 29 Sep 2004Posts: 1196Location: buried under a pile of books somewhere in Adelaide, South Australia

Posted: Sun Feb 28, 2010 8:36 am Post subject:

For some reason, I'm visualising the Mystery Salad en gelée. Perhaps the sardine brine/water/whatever mixed with gelatin would enhance the true awfulness of the salad._________________Doing what you like is freedom
Liking what you do is happiness

I grew up with unpleasant looking things embedded in fluorescent colored jello-- especially at church suppers. Orange jello with cottage cheese (to a child it looked like vomit) and lime jello with canned pears (looking like babies' bottoms) were particularly memorable. I have a gustatory phobia about anything that quivers. I am sure there are some very nice aspics out there. My fear is completely irrational, but food is so much about memory and emotions that I have trouble finding it appetizing. However, I WILL eat custard, and also soufflées, so it is probably more the sight than the texture I am not accepting.

gingerpale, no, it's not everything, I like jellied meats and stuff, but I do quiver at brightly coloured jello with stuff floating in it, which is how I imagined Judy's suggestion of the sardines floating about, and I have an involuntary aversion to tomato aspic as the texture just makes my mouth do weird things.

Headcheese on the other hand is a delight!_________________Vivant Linguae Mortuae!!

KYH--the recipe you posted sounds familiar. I just don't remember Grandma using the Worchester sauce or anything other than maybe the vinegar an sugar in the dressing. Had it been spiffed with those, I'm sure that I would have liked it much better.
Dory--my dad's aunt made a festive molded salad or lime Jell-o mixed with cottage cheese. The men in the family had the ritual of walking into the kitchen and asking, "Lena, just what the heck IS that?"
David--my dad had to be on a sodium restricted diet due to heart disease. He made headcheese one day when I was at school. I came home and looked in the fridge for a snack. Well, there was a covered opaque bowl, and I pulled the lid off, and that was good for getting one of my therapist's kids through college. _________________"Food is an important part of a balanced diet..." Fran Leibowitz

I have a brother who won't/can't eat melted cheese because of the texture--a huge pity, n'est-ce pas?
And I remember my first pan bagnat sure didn't look appetizing. Of course it turned out to be the most delicious thing I ever put in my mouth!

Dory...David Lebovitz (in his "Room for Dessert") makes a lovely champagne "gelee" dessert. Serves it with fresh fruit in a tall parfait glass. A beautiful, perfect "adult" ending to a meal. Bet it would cure you of your jello aversion!_________________So far, so good.